Devin Haney’s new DAZN deal is getting a favorable launch: a welterweight unification against Liam Paro in San Francisco, with the Australian traveling to Haney’s home region for the opening fight of that agreement.
Mike Coppinger of The Ring reports that the WBO and IBF titleholders will meet December 19 at Chase Center. The fight has yet to receive an official announcement.
It is a legitimate unification. It also puts Haney in the more comfortable position before either man throws a punch. DAZN gets to introduce its newly signed fighter to a Bay Area audience, while Paro arrives with a belt that could make that investment look better by the end of the night.
Paro’s job is to wreck the launch.
He has done something similar before. In June 2024, he traveled to Puerto Rico and beat Subriel Matias by unanimous decision for the IBF light welterweight title. The champion’s reputation and home support failed to intimidate him.
But using that victory as proof he can beat Haney would overlook the harder comparison. Matias came forward and gave Paro opportunities to land while moving. Haney can force him to become the pursuer, making the Australian create openings rather than wait for an opponent to supply them.
That is where this fight could become frustrating for Paro. Following Haney around the perimeter would allow the American to jab, move and make relatively quiet rounds look like his rounds.
Paro needs to attack the body when Haney moves, work when they get close and avoid letting every clinch become a break from the pressure. He cannot afford to spend the first half studying a target that keeps leaving.
Haney has an obligation here, too. A new broadcast deal and two belts will generate promotion, but they cannot substitute for a performance that makes people want his next fight.
Winning narrowly while limiting the action would collect another title. Taking command against a fellow champion would give DAZN something stronger to sell.
The homecoming is arranged around Haney. Whether the night belongs to him depends on how much fighting Paro forces him to do.
